USDA RAISES VETERINARY SERVICES USER FEE

USDA RAISES VETERINARY SERVICES USER FEE    U.S. Department of Agriculture has increased its user fees to process animal product, organism, vector, and germ plasm import permit applications.
   Under the final rule, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will charge applicants $94 per new import permit application and $47 for each amended application to import live animals.
   “User fees reimburse APHIS for costs of providing veterinary diagnostic services and import and export related services for live animals and birds and animal products,” the USDA said. “This final rule is intended to shift the costs of processing the applications from the general taxpayer to users of those services.”